The invention relates to a parking garage that is at least partially automatic making it possible to park a plurality of vehicles in a restricted volume.
Conventional, nonautomatic parking garages consist of parking spaces that can be accessed via a roadway traveled by the vehicle being driven by its driver. These spaces can all be accessed via roadways which represent a considerable proportion of the total surface area of the garage. In addition, a sufficient clearance has to be provided around each space to allow a vehicle to maneuver and position itself easily, while allowing its driver to get out of his vehicle. The disadvantage of these parking garages therefore arises from the fact that a very considerable surface area is reserved for accessing the various parking spaces and cannot be directly used for parking vehicles.
To remedy these disadvantages, there are automatic parking garages in which a driver positions his vehicle at an entrance point, this vehicle then being conducted automatically to its parking space.
A first solution is described in document FR2641020, in which a driver positions his vehicle at the entrance in a vertical elevator. This elevator, that can be moved horizontally, is then capable of positioning the vehicle in its final parking space, in the chosen column and at the chosen height. The vehicle is released in a similar manner via the elevator. The first disadvantage of this solution is its cost due to the use of a complex elevator. In addition, the total number of parking spaces remains limited since the garage is limited to a two-dimensional vertical geometry.
Document FR27000354 proposes a parking garage on a horizontal surface in which each vehicle is positioned on a platform that can be moved transversely. The first disadvantage of this solution is that the garage is limited to a two-dimensional horizontal geometry. Its second disadvantage is its complexity and its high cost since each vehicle is positioned on an independent movable platform. A third disadvantage arises from the nonoptimization of the available surface area: specifically, an entire row must always be free for allowing access to the most distant spaces, and in addition each row must have a width compatible with the longest vehicle admitted to park: a considerable surface area not occupied by the shortest vehicles remains unused.
Document U.S. Pat. No. 5,678,972 describes a three-dimensional garage solution based on a combination of horizontal platforms and elevators as in the preceding solutions. This solution, although three-dimensional, combines the other disadvantages mentioned above.
Finally, document U.S. Pat. No. 3,040,913 describes an automatic car park in which vehicles enter through an entrance where they are positioned on a platform and raised to a predefined floor by a first elevator. The placement on the chosen floor is carried out from a choice of several parking lines. The exit is similar, via a second elevator. All the movements of the platforms supporting the vehicles are made by automatic driving means. One disadvantage of this solution arises from the fact that two elevators are necessary, one for the entrance and the other for the exit. Furthermore, a second disadvantage arises from the fact that all the vehicle movements are carried out by means of a movable platform on which the vehicle is parked, which induces a costly infrastructure.